Winning & Losing
In this episode, three kids who know a lot about winning and losing — Aiden (a chess player), Eliza (a soccer player), and Willa (a gymnast) — join host Todd Loyd to discuss winning and losing and to go on a journey to the Land of Qook-a-lackas to help Quinby rethink a recent run of quibble loses.
Original Song: A Little Big Better
Guest Stars in Winning & Losing
The role of Quinby is played by Bridget Regan, an actor and producer. Her film credits include John Wick with Keanu Reeves, Devil’s Gate opposite Milo Ventimiglia, HBO’s The Leisure Class, The Best and the Brightest alongside Neal Patrick Harris, Sex and the City, Weak, The Babysitters and Blinders and the upcoming Canvas opposite Joanne Kelly and the queer rom-com Things Like This. In television, she presently appears on The Company You Keep, The Winchesters and The Rookie. She has MANY other TV credits. Originally from Carlsbad, California, Regan relocated to New York City to pursue her acting career. She originated the role of Cecile Leroux in the Broadway comedy Is He Dead opposite Norbert Leo Butz written by Mark Twain, adapted by David Ives and directed by Michael Blakemore. Regan has produced multiple productions Off Broadway and at the iconic LaMaMa Theater of the electro pop queer musical Camp Wanatachi written by Natalie Weiss and Bekah Brunstetter. She now has a feature film of of Camp Wantatachi in development with Zadan Meron Productions.
The original song “Do Your Best” and ukulele music in the episode is written and performed by Bill English.
Original Song Created for the Episode
Sometimes we win … and sometimes we lose. Both are okay and both present opportunities to learn. This song, “Do Your Best,” was written and performed by Bill English as part of the “Winning & Losing” episode of Sparkler Learning’s Little Kids, Big Hearts podcast.
Educator Resources
Playing together requires social and emotional skills: working together, solving problems together, trusting our teammates. And, the end of a game, when someone wins and someone loses requires additional skills. Both winning and losing present great opportunities for children to practice social skills (how they act and react to others), emotional skills (how they self-regulate and cope with big feelings), and outlook (how they move forward and look toward continuing to improve next time).
In our guide for educators, find discussion prompts and in-classroom activities you can play with students in pre-K through third grade to help them practice and process winning and losing.